Border Agent Gets 8 Months for Corruption

Authorities say Silva allowed his brother-in-law to drive through the San Ysidro crossing

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TIJUANA, MEXICO - JUNE 27: Traffic in the US enters Mexico at the San Ysidro border crossing, the world?s busiest, on June 27, 2008 in Tijuana, Mexico. With the cost of gasoline in California around $4.60 per gallon, many drivers are buying their fuel in Mexico for about $3.20. There is a price to pay for cheaper gas though. Mexican gas is formulated with more sulfur than California gas and that can damage the emission control equipment on US cars, causing them to fail emissions tests and leading to expensive repairs. In addition, unless a driver has other business in Mexico, part of their fuel savings will be burned up idling in a line that can easily last for hours to get back into the US. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)

A former Customs and Border Protection officer has been sentenced to eight months in prison for allowing a wanted migrant smuggler to get through his inspection lane.

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Thomas Silva apologized to a federal judge in San Diego on Friday, saying he disgraced his badge when he allowed his brother-in-law and two others to enter the U.S. in a special lane for prescreened motorists.

At the time, the brother-in-law was wanted for escaping a halfway house while serving time for his smuggling conviction.

The 33-year-old's sentence is also for pleading guilty to defrauding Farmers Insurance out of more than $7,000 for falsely claiming a truck that he took to Mexico had been stolen.